We're Still Standing

This past week marks 16 years since I expatriated from the U.S. to the Philippines  (almost 17 years for my dear wife Lydia who as native of this country preceded me here to pave the way and set things up for us)   Since then, naturally much has changed in our lives.  For one  thing, we are  now  fully-fledged seniors.  But despite that and a couple of serious  health issues we are still alert and  physically active. 

What hasn't changed in all that time is our address. From the very beginning of our time here, Lydia and I have lived primarily at the same residence in Eastwood City, a community in Quezon City which in turn is part of the sprawling megalopolis of Metro-Manila.  I say "primarily" because of one of the changes that we have made is renovation of the house that we have in Quezon Province. Before the COVID pandemic struck,  we had intended to live there  while keeping our condo in Eastwood  as a crash pad for our forays into Metro-Manila. But we have been unable to even leave town for several months due to lockdowns within  Metro-Manila and a government edict against such travel.  And we have no idea when this ban will be lifted.

Yet this hurdle is not as great as some of the other obstacles and challenges that we have experienced. But not for a minute do we regret  our decision to move to the Philippines.  Although we have faced and overcome many hurdles  along the way,, overall we are comfortable. As a matter of fact I doubt that our standard of living here would have been possible in the U.S.  So we have no plans to ever repatriate. 

It's highly questionable that we will be around for another 16 years. But however much time Lydia and I have left, I just hope that we can continue to deal with whatever life throws at us as reasonably well as we have managed up to this point. I think that's about as much as anyone could  ask.

Foreign Residents in the Philippines And the Covid Vaccination: An Update

Since I wrote "Will Expats In The  Philippines Get a Shot at Vaccination?" , quite a lot has taken place personally in relation to the topic.  First, my wife Lydia and I were both infected by COVID in early April, As seniors we are fortunate that it was only a mild case, and we were able to self-isolate at home which is a condominium  unit. The building security was very supportive in seeing to it that we got the supplies that we needed and in otherwise assisting us during  our quarantine. 

Then a few weeks ago we were finally vaccinated.  My worries that this might not happen due to my being a non-citizen turned out to be baseless.(This matter was never an issue for Lydia as she's a dual citizen).

Here's how it happened. In Quezon City where I reside, one sure way for inclusion in the vaccination program is to register for the Quezon City Identification Card ("Q-Citizen") At first I tried doing this online but couldn't complete that application due to technical problems. Fortunately, thanks to our  barangay, we were able to do so manually. The form does inquire about the applicant's  nationality but includes a field for non-Filipinos to just list their country of origin. In other words, being a foreigner does not disqualify  one from Q-Citizenship and the "perks" that come with it, including the COVID vaccination. And there must be a similar accessibility for non-citizens in other local government units as well. For example a friend of mine who's also a permanent resident and living in Parañaquae  was also vaccinated and  several weeks at that before I was inoculated. 

On the evening of May 14, Lydia and I received texts inviting us to get vaccinated the next day at the nearby venue that our barangay had set up for this purpose. The paperwork processing at the site was disorderly, but once we got to the area where the shots were being administered things went quite smoothly. As for reaction to the vaccine, which for us was AstraZenica, the only discomfort that we experienced was a sore arm.

In addition to the protection given by the jab itself, even though it was just the first one , it  also gave us a psychological boost in that we now feel reasonably safe from recurrence of  the disease.  Our second  dose is set for August. And we look forward to getting it.  We likewise  hope that all  citizens and non-citizens alike here who are eligible for  vaccination will avail of it, That will be a huge step towards in getting the Philippines back on track towards recovery from the social and economic devastation that the pandemic has wrought across the country.

Will Expats In The Philippines Get a Shot at Vaccination?

 (Formerly titled "What About Us Expats")

At this writing, a vaccine (or vaccines if more than one pharmaceutical  company will furnish them) for COVID-19 may soon arrive the Philippines.  When the inoculation program here begins, it will be administered  to  the citizens on a priority basis  which is to be expected.  However, note that the key word here is "citizens." Are we foreigners who live in this country omitted from coverage?

As a long time permanent resident  and a senior, I find the possibility of  such an exclusion very disturbing. And until recently I didn't know where to turn for recourse. Moreover, there are thousands of us non-citizens who make the Philippines our home, and it would be unconscionable for the authorities to shut us out from the vaccination program. So I'm not alone in this concern.

Fortunately, newspaper columnist, Cito Beltran of the "Philippine Star" recently graciously devoted a couple columns to this topic, and he came up with an answer:  According to  an  undersecretary of the Department  of Health, foreign residents have not been overlooked or excluded from the national vaccination  coverage after all. It's just a matter of coordinating with other government agencies as to where to fit us into the mix of categories who will be receiving the jab.

Mr. Beltran also pointed out the absurdity of the notion held by some Filipinos that foreigners who live here  ought to just return to their home countries for their vaccinations. But that would make as much (or as little) sense as expecting Filipinos living abroad to return here for their inoculations. After all, isn't turn about fair play?

As I mentioned, I think it would be inhumane for the Philippine government--or for that matter, for any host country--to deny access to the COVID vaccination to its non-citizen residents. For those who can't think beyond the idea that if such a refusal were implemented, aliens would only infect each other, they'd better think again,  Unvaccinated  non-citizens would also spread the disease to  Filipinos with whom they come in contact as well. And as it turns out the latter is a large number. Almost  half the population refuses to get the injections. (So forget about herd immunity). If anything, these "skeptics" are the ones who pose a health threat to everyone--native or permanent resident--who wants to be vaccinated but is denied that protection.

That said, all COVID vaccines are not created equal. Some makes offer better protection than others.  And I for one would not  want Sinovac for example, which has an efficacy rate of only about 50.4%'.  But this is not the same as rejecting COVID vaccines as a whole.  Quezon CiIty where I reside may be utilizing AstraZeneca instead.    

In short, for  those of us fortunate enough to have not caught the coronavirus,  the pandemic has still brought about  a great deal of mental and emotional distress.. Now that there's a vaccine which will eventually reach this country--possibly tomorrow, better days may be ahead for the people, including us expats.